


Ride To School

by americanithink



Series: Reddie Works [1]
Category: IT (2017), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - No Pennywise (IT), Crushes, First Meetings, M/M, One Shot, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-21
Updated: 2018-11-21
Packaged: 2019-08-26 23:25:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16690927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/americanithink/pseuds/americanithink
Summary: Eddie is late to school, yet he still stops to help a stranger wearing glasses.





	Ride To School

**Author's Note:**

> Had this short fic stashed away for a while. Hope you enjoy it!

Eddie petaled quickly down the street. As the wind rushed past him, he thought about how he wasn't being as conscious as he would like. The desperation of not being called out in front of the whole class for walking in late made him go faster and care less. Eddie thought about how his mother would probably have a heart attack if she saw him now. He was even tempted to confess later once he got home. But ultimately decided that was a stupid idea. 

While thinking about his poor mother, Eddie almost didn’t even notice the person who jumped in the path of his bike. Luckily, Eddie was able to come to a swift stop before ramming into the idiot. He felt his breath grow rapidly fast out of terror.

“What the hell?!” Eddie yelled as anger replaced his fear.

“Please, I know you probably don’t know me but my bike got a flat and I need a ride!”

Eddie examined the boy: same age, thick glasses, black shaggy hair, pale skin, overall cute. 

“How do you know what school I go to?” Eddie finally asked while lifting his head, as if to show he isn’t interested in picking up hitchhikers. An amused look appeared on the boy’s face at that statement.

“Maybe because there is only one high school in town.”

Eddie sighed and nodded. It isn’t like he could argue against the truth.

“Fine,” he waved his hand toward himself, “Get on.” 

The boy smiled and quickly did as he was told. The two sped down the street. Eddie cursed himself for agreeing to give this boy a ride; the extra weight was making them go a bit slower. 

‘A cute boy is holding onto me and depending on me to get him to school. Why did I do this to myself,’ Eddie thought. He didn’t want to be the first one to speak but he knew the silence was beginning to get a little awkward. Eddie felt a weight lift off his shoulders when he heard the other boy say, “I am Richie, Richie Tozier.”

“Oh,” Eddie glanced over his shoulder, “Nice to meet you, Richie. I’m Eddie Kaspbrak.”

Eddie almost fell off the bike when Richie suddenly gasped then followed it with a hard slap on the back. 

“What?! What the hell is it!?”

“You're THAT kid?! The hypochondriac, germaphobe kid!?”

Eddie was silent for a few seconds before asking, “Is that how everyone knows me?”

Now Richie was silent. It was painfully obvious that Eddie was quietly outraged. He wished he hadn’t said that. Richie gulped and reached his mind for something else to talk about but nothing was coming to mind. The only thing he could think was ‘You fucked it up! You fucked it up!’

Eddie finally said in a factual tone, “A hypochondriac is someone who thinks they have medical conditions they don’t actually have. While I actually do have those medical conditions.”

Richie opened his mouth to say something but Eddie went on, “I am only worried about my health because sometimes my health is ACTUALLY in danger. I am not crazy. So don’t act like I'm fucking crazy.”

Richie wanted to apologize but something inside—his pride —stopped him. His instincts were yelling for him to turn the whole situation into a joke. That is what Richie always did. Took a serious situation and tried to make light out of it. Though it usually falls flat because he comes across as an insensitive jerk.   

“Oh come on, Eds...It’s not like  _ everyone _ knows you as the hypochondriac kid. Only those who took interest in you.”

“Don’t call me that.” Silence. “What is that suppose to mean?”

The school was in sight and Richie was getting anxious. A part of him wants to say “Fuck it. You messed up this possible friendship but what’s new” while the other side of him wants to make things right. Richie really did lean more toward the idea of not leaving Eddie on a bad note. He truly did like Eddie, even though he didn’t really know him. 

If Richie was gonna be honest, he actually knew who Eddie was before he introduced himself. His reaction was totally staged, Richie just didn’t want to seem like a creep. Thinking back on it, Richie guessed he could have gone about it in a better way than bringing up what the other kids called Eddie behind his back. 

Before now, Richie had seen Eddie around the school and noted the peculiar little habits he had. Such as the two fanny packs. What was that about? Richie wanted to know. Richie wanted to know why Eddie did the things he did. And most importantly, Richie wanted to find out why he thought Eddie looked so cute while doing them.

Richie spoke in a friendly manner, “It means most people don’t really give a shit about the random students they pass in the hallway. Then there are people who are so bored with their own lives that they do.”

Richie tried to look at Eddie’s face the best he could to see how he was reacting. As far as he could tell, Eddie was accepting this explanation. So he went on.

“Bad thing about that is that some people who are so bored with their lives can be someone such as Henry Bowers,” Richie’s tone was as if to try to intrigue Eddie, “But then there are people like me who are bored but don’t want to rip your throat out or cause any other type of violence toward you.” Eddie straightened up at the thought of Henry going after him, he could feel goosebumps prickling up. 

They were getting closer to the bike rack.

“What are you trying to say?”

Richie smiled, “Wanna be friends?” 

Eddie stopped the bike, got off, chained it up then look and Richie. At first, he seemed unamused and disapproving. Richie got off the bike and held his hand out to shake. Warmth filled Eddie’s gut, he couldn’t help but have a small smile. He quickly shook Richie's hand and said, “Sure.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading my story!


End file.
